Over 80 people gathered together to fill the historic Watson Town Hall for a September potluck, community building, great music, and compelling storytelling. All generations were present, from very little ones to Millennials to Baby Boomers to the elderly.

The Deep Roots event in Watson was a celebration of food, community, and landscape. The Stick Bird Trio from the Morris and Hancock area played throughout the evening. Kylene Olson, former Watson mayor and the Executive Director of the Chippewa River Watershed Project, welcomed the crowd with stories of her personal memories of the Watson Town Hall. A poet, Athena Kildegaard, and author, Jim VanDerPol, graced us with a reading from their books. Alumni and former professors of the Sustainable Food Productions (SFP) Program, which was suspended earlier this year (click here for the Stand for Food campaign to reinstate the program), gave moving testimonials of what the program had provided them in their careers and for their families and communities. Representative Mary Franson spoke to the SFP Alumni and educators as well as event attendees to express her support of sustainable agriculture and the ability for people to reach their American Dream.

Organizations such as the Granary Food Co-op, Sustainable Food Production Program, Chippewa 10% Project, the Chippewa River Watershed Project, CURE, and LSP had information tables and take action items for attendees. To view photos of the event, click here.